


Adolescents

by Sandyclaws68



Series: Parenthood [4]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Established Relationship, Gen, M/M, Marriage, Teenagers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-07
Updated: 2015-06-07
Packaged: 2018-04-03 07:58:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4093117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sandyclaws68/pseuds/Sandyclaws68
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's a well known fact that teenagers push boundaries, and Iruka is getting some white hair because of it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Adolescents

The slam of the front door caused Iruka to wince and pull his reading glasses from his nose. He almost wished for some sort of jutsu to close off his ears so he didn't have to listen to the argument that had clearly started outside the house.

“- and it's not any of your business, anyway!”

“Really? Because it's a member of my team that you're practicing your skills on, and I don't appreciate the way it's affecting his ability to do his job!”

A loud snort. “Seriously? Like I believe you give a crap about your team, Hatake-taichou.” The eye roll was nearly as audible as the snort. “More like you don't appreciate how it's making you look, especially to the jounin selection committee.”

It was more than past time for Iruka to step in and stop the figurative bloodletting. He deliberately knocked a heavy book off of his desk; the slam of it hitting the floor echoed in the house and brought the loud voices to a stop. There was a clatter of footsteps in the corridor and then a whirl of blond hair as his daughter bounced into his office. With a pleased cry of “Oto-chan!” she threw her arms around him and kissed his cheek before perching on the arm of his chair.

Iruka didn't look at her or return the greeting, watching the door of the office instead. When Umino appeared there he finally looked at his daughter. “Suzu,” he said, and the seriousness in his voice caused her smile to slip slightly. “I'd like to speak to you brother, if you'll excuse us.” Her smile returned to its full wattage as she tossed her brother a triumphant look and flipped her hair over her shoulder. She clearly thought that Iruka was going to lecture Umino about the fight (which was obviously his fault in her mind), but he hastened to disabuse her of that idea. “You and I also need to talk, so I'd like for you to be in your bedroom when I'm finished here.”

Umino barely manged to keep his smile contained. Barely. And Iruka fought against the urge to roll his eyes. Dealing with his teenage offspring made him very glad that he had retired from active teaching. Younger kids on top of obnoxious teenagers might have been too much to take.

Once Suzu left the office – with a perceptible sulk to her shoulders – Iruka motioned his son to enter and close the door. Umino looked uncomfortable, as if he was also expecting a lecture. “Um,” he began, looking everywhere but at Iruka. “I'm supposed to be having dinner at my mom's tonight, so. . .”

That time Iruka did roll his eyes. What was it about teenagers that made them think everyone besides them was some sort of idiot? “Your mother isn't expecting you for another three hours, at least,” he said, pinning Umino in place with a glare. “So sit down and stop trying to get out of this conversation.”

“Chichi. . .” Umino began. Iruka waited, one eyebrow raised. He knew it wouldn't take very long, and before he was really ready for it everything came flooding out; Suzu's crush on his team mate, Kenji, her new-found, and annoying, habit of hanging around them whenever she had the chance, the constant flirting, and. . .

“She's been using her power, Chichi. On Kenji, mostly, but other people as well. She caused Mariko-chan and Takashi-kun to get in a fight, and manipulated her sensei into not punishing her for a stupid rookie mistake on a mission. The fruit vendor in the market doesn't charge her for anything anymore, and she even tried it on Nanadaime-sama.”

That got Iruka's attention. He had suspected that Suzuran was testing the limits, both of her Reverse Empathy and Yamanaka mind control justsus. He didn't think it had gotten so bad that she was working her wiles on Naruto, though. He looked at Umino, questioning. His son laughed.

“She didn't get anywhere with that, though. Sasuke-oji-san saw right through it and put a stop to it.” Umino's grin was almost feral. “I don't think she'll be trying anything like that again.”

That made Iruka feel a little better, but only a very little. “Are you genuinely worried about how this is affecting your team mate and his ability to do his job?” he asked, not because he doubted his son but because he needed to hear it directly from the source.

Umino nodded. “It's already caused a couple of training accidents, and nearly botched a B-rank mission.” He sighed and rubbed his forehead. “Kenji's a good guy, and a good shinobi. Before this started I'd have said he was a shoe-in to pass the next chuunin exam. But now. . .”

Iruka nodded; he knew from personal experience (a lifetime ago) how easy it was to have your concentration derailed even before the actual chuunin exam started. It wasn't an unreasonable concern, but. . . “What about the rest of Suzu's accusation?” he asked, carefully keeping his face neutral. “Is that a factor?”

Umino flushed. “I'm not going to lie; I am upset that all of this might make me look bad to the jounin selection committee.” He sighed and pushed a hand through his hair, dislodging his hitai-ate. “But my feelings and issues don't change the fact that she is doing something that both you, and Ino-oba-san, have forbidden!”

And that was something Iruka couldn't argue with. He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, trying not to feel like a failure as a father. It seemed that Suzuran had been testing her skills for longer than he suspected, and their ongoing (never-ending, more like) sibling rivalry had put Umino in the position of bearing the brunt of the consequences.

“Chichi, are you all right?”

Iruka gave his head a quick shake and met Umino's eyes with the best smile he could muster up. “I'm fine. A little tired, that's all.” And frustrated. And angry. And hurt that his daughter was being so careless and irresponsible with her gifts. “I'm fine,” he repeated. “You'd best go get ready for this evening; if you're late your mother will have my head.”

Umino hesitated one last time, but then left the office with a smile and a quick wave. The door had barely closed behind him when there was an almost soundless _pop_ and a brush of displaced air against Iruka's back. “How much did you hear?” he asked, as a pair of arms came around his shoulders.

“Enough to know that you're probably pretty angry right now,” Kakashi said, pressing a quick kiss to the top of his husband's head before moving to the other side of the desk and dropping in to the chair that their son had recently occupied.

“Wouldn't you be?” Iruka asked with a sigh. “She's been told countless times how important it is that she behave responsibly in this regard! And now. . .” He couldn't finish the sentence. Not even to the man he loved more than his own life would he admit what was truly running through his head.

Kakashi just sat and studied him for a long moment. His scrutiny was such that Iruka found his face starting to flush and his eyes dropping, unable to meet his husband's gaze. “You're not a failure, you know.” He grinned at the shocked expression that crossed Iruka's face. “What? Nearly twenty years of marriage and you think I _can't_ read your mind?”

Iruka acknowledged that with a small smile before growing serious again. “If I'm not a failure as a father than why is she doing this?”

“She's a teenager, Iruka,” Kakashi replied, sounding almost too reasonable. “Pushing boundaries is what they do. It's just that Suzuran has a few more of those than the average teen.”

“Umino's not pushing anything.”

Kakashi laughed. “He did it when he was ten, remember? I think setting fire to the Hokage's office with an improperly performed chidori qualifies as pushing a boundary.”

Iruka smiled as he remembered the incident. Kakashi had steadfastly refused to teach his son that signature lightning jutsu, and been beyond angry when Sasuke had done so. The fact the Umino had lied and told Sasuke that he had permission only made the whole situation worse. And Iruka had to ruefully acknowledge that at least Suzu wasn't physically endangering anyone with her actions.

Kakashi stood up suddenly and leaned across the desk to kiss his husband. “Do you feel a little bit better now?” he asked, pulling the hair tie free so Iruka's long hair fell forward over his shoulders.

Iruka nodded, leaning forward slightly in anticipation of another kiss. Kakashi grinned and obliged him. “Then my work here is done,” he said. “No stressing over this, sensei,” he went on in his familiar teasing voice. “I don't want to see more white hair on your head.” And then he was gone in another _pop_ and puff of air.

_No stressing_ , Iruka thought to himself. _Easier said than done_. But never one to put off an unpleasant job he left the office and made his way across the courtyard to Suzu's bedroom. The expression on her face when she opened the door to his knock told him that she knew exactly what was coming.

“Oto-chan. . .”

He held up a hand. “Don't. I don't want to hear any explanations or excuses.” He gestured for her to sit back on the bed and took the chair by the desk. “You know why I want to talk to you.”

She simply nodded, taking his injunction against excuses to heart. Her hands were clenched so tightly in her lap that her knuckles were turning white.

“Suzu.” She looked up from her entwined hands. “I'm not angry.” Iruka smiled wryly. “Well, I am, but I'm more disappointed. You do understand why both your mother and I have always insisted on you being careful with your powers, right? You have the ability, directly or indirectly, to influence a tremendous number of people. You may think that sounds like a good thing, and maybe even a little fun, but I can assure you that the possible negative impacts are not worth it, and I'm not just referring to getting lectured by Sasuke because you tried something with Naruto.” A fierce flush crossed Suzu's cheeks and she dropped her gaze. Iruka waited patiently until she met his eyes again. “You know that right?”

“I know. I just. . .” She exhaled in a gusty sigh. “I wanted to feel, just once, like I was the powerful one. Like I was worthy of praise and admiration, instead of -” She bit her words off, but Iruka had too much experience with children to not catch on to what she hadn't said.

“Instead of Umino, you mean?” When she nodded Iruka went on. “Suzu, you're going to have to accept a few things about yourself and the world you live in if you're going to survive and thrive as a shinobi. And one of those things is that Umino _is_ more powerful than you.”

Suzu's eyes flashed with anger as she surged up from the bed and stood in front of her father. “You just don't understand!” she exclaimed.

Iruka laughed softly. “ _I_ don't understand?” he asked as he gently pushed her to sit back down. “Tell me, Hatake Suzuran, who am I married to?” Her eyes widened and her mouth shaped into an 'O' of surprise that made her father laugh again. “I'm probably the one person in Konoha who fully understands how you feel,” he said, reaching out and cupping her chin in one hand. “But what you seem to be unable to understand is that acknowledging another's strengths does not mean you are weak. And maybe if you spent less time fooling around with your powers and more time actually training them you'd see that for yourself.”

“What. . . What do you mean?”

“I mean exactly what I said. If you want to be regarded, and respected, as a strong and powerful kunoichi then train your skills.” Iruka rose from the chair and went to sit on the bed, wrapping an arm around his daughter's shoulders. “I should have presented this offer a year ago, when you first made chuunin, but I believed another year to hone your general skills would be beneficial.”

Suzu laughed, pressing her face against her father's neck. “You just can't stop being a teacher, can you?” she asked. “But what's the offer?”

“You have two possible paths, Suzu,” Iruka began, fully aware that he still sounded like a teacher. “One, you can train with me and develop Reverse Empathy until you can channel your emotions in a more useful direction.” He snorted slightly. “I know Ibiki-san would be more than happy to have your services. Or you can work with your mother and focus on the Yamanaka and sensory techniques. But what you can't do is continue with your current, irresponsible behavior. Is that understood?”

Suzu nodded and lifted her head to meet Iruka's gaze. “Not even a little bit?” she asked, looking sly. “Just occasionally, to maybe poke holes in Umino's ego?”

Iruka rolled his eyes. “Absolutely not! Besides,” he went on, a grin making one corner of his mouth twitch. “You hardly need any special skills to deflate your brother's ego; you've been doing it since you were four years old!” He kissed the top of her head then, before standing up and moving to the door. “You don't have to decide right away. Take the time to give it some thought, and talk to you mother about it as well. Then we'll figure out what comes next, okay?”

She bounced off of the bed and threw her arms around Iruka. “Okay!” she exclaimed before pressing a smacking kiss to his cheek and messing up his loose hair. The she was gone, out the door and down the hall with boundless teen-aged enthusiasm, shouting for her Kashi-papa and Sasuke-oji-san.

And Iruka didn't feel like such a failure anymore.


End file.
